Samford Athletics Tackles
Unprecedented Spring Season by Joey Mullins
This spring proved to be the most unusual season in the history of college sports. Athletics departments across the country were faced with the difficult task of finding a way for most—and, in some cases, all—of their teams to compete at the same time. Samford University was no exception. In August 2020, the Southern Conference (SoCon) Council of Presidents announced that the league would not have fall conference competition, instead, postponing all fall competition to the spring. Samford Athletics’ staff—including coaches, administration, facilities and operations, external relations, sports performance, equipment management, academics, compliance, and many others—faced a dilemma they had never faced before, working together to facilitate athletic competition for 15 of its 17 teams during the same season.
Michelle Durban, Samford’s deputy director of athletics, said she was impressed with the way the staff came together. “It was a total team effort,” Durban said. “Every area had to step up and do more than what is normally expected of them.” In addition to 15 different sports teams competing in one season, several areas encountered additional issues concerning the COVID-19 restrictions that had to be put in place. For the athletic training staff, one of the greatest concerns was making sure the teams and department staff remained compliant with CDC
14 • Seasons • Summer 2021
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